Tri-Nations Clinched
New Zealand has won the Tri-Nations series beating South Africa 29-22 in Johannesburg. The hosts had led 22-17 up until the 78th minute when All Blacks skipper Richie McCaw scored a controversial try in…
News of New Zealanders via Global Media
They’ve Done it Again
New Zealand have secured their 13th consecutive Test win beating Australia 2-1 in Christchurch, securing the Bledisloe Cup for the seventh straight year. After their 48-29 hammering when the teams met in Melbourne last…
Snowy Did it All
“So remarkable was the sporting life of Eric Tindill, who has died in Wellington at 99 years and 226 days, that being the longest lived of all the 2600 men who have played test…
All Blacks dominate
“Dan Carter inspires as freewheeling New Zealand crush Australia,” headlines the Guardian. “The All Blacks gained their third successive five-pointer in the tournament at a sandy Etihad Stadium in Melbourne beating the Wallabies 49-28…
Sell-out in Soweto
The All Blacks’ historic test against the Springboks in Soweto at Johannesburg’s famed Soccer City — now called the National Stadium — has sold out, with nearly 9, fans to attend the match on…
Record for Rocket Man
All Blacks star Joe Rokocoko, 27, is the team’s most-capped winger surpassing national treasures John Kirwan and Jonah Lomu. “It’s a huge honour for myself considering the players who have gone before me — it’s…
All Blacks start afresh
“New Zealand is revolutionising rugby,” according to The Independent’s Peter Bills. “For those with a brain to think, a mind to rationalise, what the All Blacks are doing right now in world rugby terms…
Control on the Park
The All Blacks have beaten the Springboks in their opening Tri-Nations match 32-12 at Eden Park “with a superbly controlled and aggressive performance”. The All Blacks, who had lost their three previous encounters against…
Titillating Tries
“The true mark of a man is in his swagger, according to Dunedin folk,” writes The Sydney Morning Herald’s Marissa Calligeros. “And there is no better indication of this than rugby played in its…
Centenary Clash
The New Zealand Maori side has beaten Ireland in Rotorua 31-28, the match part of a series to commemorate the centenary of the formation of the first official Maori rugby team in New Zealand….
Too Good in Taranaki
The All Blacks have thrashed Ireland 66-28 in New Plymouth. Outscored by nine tries to four, it was a bad night for the Irish who have failed to beat the New Zealanders in 23…
Thrills and Spills
Justin Marshall has ended his rugby career playing for Saracens in the Guinness Premiership final against the Leicester Tigers. The 36-year-old, capped 88 times by his country, describes his last match, unable to hide…
To Sign or Not to Sign
Twenty-four-year-old Aucklander Sonny Bill Williams is facing a sporting dilemma: does he play for the All Blacks at next year’s Rugby World Cup or sign a $6 million three-year deal with French side Toulon?…
Feast Your Eyes on This
“Rest, relaxation and rugby. What more could you want?” asks the Telegraph in an article written in the build up to the Rugby World Cup 211. When it comes to breathtaking beauty it is…
Funding the Flagship
“The turf in Auckland’s Eden Park stadium is freshly laid and verdant green, but three floors up, the corporate hospitality suite remains unfinished,” writes the Financial Times’ David Fickling. “Martin Snedden, chief executive of New Zealand’s…
Hartley Locks Ears
New Zealand-born English hooker Dylan Hartley, 23, talks to The Independent on Sunday ahead of the team’s biennial trip to Edinburgh to play Scotland, which England meets once more before a “supremely crucial” World Cup pool…
Lending a Hand
Former New Zealand All Black Wellington-born Filo Tiatia, 38, now a back-row forward and coach with the Ospreys rugby region in Wales, is backing a campaign to save Swansea’s Tennis Centre from closure. He…
Getting Stuck In
Rotorua-raised Northampton hooker Dylan Hartley, 23, hopes to play for England in the Six Nations and, according to the Telegraph’s Paul Ackford, “Hartley is a find for England because he plays with a rage that all…
Watch Out for Laulala
New Zealand centre Casey Laulala, 27, signed with the Cardiff Blues in July, having turned down Magners League champions Munster. Samoan-born Laulala is described by many as one of the hardest players to contain…
Watch out for Laulala
New Zealand centre Casey Laulala, 27, signed with the Cardiff Blues in July, having turned down Magners League champions Munster. Samoan-born Laulala is described by many as one of the hardest players to contain in broken-field…
Home to Rest
Wallabies coach Robbie Deans heads home to Christchurch for some jet boating and a family catch-up having been at the helm of the Australian team for two seasons. Deans and the Wallabies flew out…
No hope for French
The All Blacks “overwhelmed” France 39–12 at Stade Velodrome in Marseille completing their four-test campaign in Europe without conceding a try. A rampant All Blacks wearing white jerseys to avoid a color clash scored…
Creative in Cardiff
Fly half Dan Carter “played sublimely” against Wales at Millennium Stadium in Cardiff despite jeers from the capacity crowd, writes the Guardian’s Eddie Butler, “showing no sign of the calf injury that had persuaded…
Finals Footy
Canterbury has won what could be the final Air New Zealand Cup 28–20 against Wellington in Christchurch. Two tries to Colin Slade helped Canterbury to an 18–3 half-time lead and that deficit proved too…
Union Purgatory
“If we need any proof that God is a New Zealander,” writes The Australian’s Bret Harris, “it is the hell that Wallabies coach Robbie Deans is going through.” “Deans’ mortal sin was leaving New…
Tokyo Tactics Pay Off
The All Blacks extended their seven-match unbeaten record over the Wallabies with a score of 32–19 watched by a crowd of 44,030 at Tokyo’s National Stadium. Dan Carter kicked 22 points to add to…
Modest Wrecking Ball
“Put simply: when Richie McCaw plays, New Zealand tend to win; when he doesn’t, they don’t,” states Telegraph sports writer Paul Ackford as part of a week-long debate in the publication to decide who…
Best Shape Yet
Jonah Lomu, 34, returns to rugby this month playing for French amateur side Marseille-Vitrolles and he says he is in the best shape ever. Once the most feared man in world rugby, Lomu, who…
Rugby’s Adonis
“Ladies and gentlemen – introducing the new Jonah Lomu,” announces Alison Kervin in an article for The Sunday Times. “The awesome New Zealand wing who tore the England defence to pieces on a memorable…
Pressure for the Best
All Black coach Graham Henry has told The Independent that though New Zealand’s national team has a much smaller resource than the majority of countries, this is what makes his job so interesting and…
Back to Blacks
World champion Black Ferns will play a rare double-header with the All Blacks against England at London’s Twickenham on November 21 – something Black Ferns coach Brian Evans believed would inspire his players. “Twickenham…
Closing Time
The All Blacks head to South Africa for the Tri-Nations Tournament as the best closers in rugby. In the last five meetings between the All Blacks and the Springboks, the All Blacks have dominated…
Bledisloe Cup Memories
All Black Evan “Ted” Jessep, who was born in 1904 and died in 1983, debuted for New Zealand in 1931 at Eden Park against the Wallabies as the second hooker in a two-man front…
Battle Commences
The All Blacks have won their first match in the 2009 Bledisloe Cup and Tri-Nations series against Australia 22–16 at Auckland’s Eden Park. With skipper Richie McCaw back to lead the way, the All…
Back in the Hot Seats
All Blacks head coach Graham Henry and his two assistants Wayne Smith and Steve Hansen have been re-appointed for an extended two seasons until the end of the 2011 World Cup. “Graham, Wayne and…
Ospreys Welcome Collins
Former All Black back-rower Jerry Collins, 28, has signed two-year contract with Welsh Liberty Stadium side the Ospreys having arrived from French team Toulon. Collins says he is taking nothing for granted at his…
Back for More
Rugby great Jonah Lomu, 34, is to join French third division side Marseille Vitrolles. And Lomu hopes that, together with fellow new boys Alain Hyardet, Isitolo Maka, Julian Vulakoro and David Gerard, he can…
Blacks Triumph
The Junior All Blacks have won the IRB Toshiba World Junior Championship beating England 44-28 in Tokyo, retaining the title won last year in Wales when they thrashed the same team 38-3 in the…
Cooper the Wallaby
Tokoroa-born Quade Cooper, who recently played his first Test as a Wallaby, knows rugby’s brutal side says Greg Growden of the Brisbane Times, and growing up in the North Island timber town, it was…
Candid in Cork
Doug Howlett, 30, who is based in Cork having signed with Munster in 2008, is profiled in the Irish Times which discusses the Northern Hemisphere team, his family and whether he’ll return to New…
All Black Nostalgia
Dan Carter is returning to New Zealand from his time playing in Perpignan, France and in the first of an exclusive two part interview with The Independent, Carter “makes an unequivocal statement about a…
Miliaina to Skipper
Fullback Mils Muliaina will captain the All Blacks home tests against France and Italy in June, taking over from an injured Richie McCaw. “Mils is in the leaders group in the All Blacks,” New…
To Osaka and Kintetsu
Crusaders fullback Blenheim-born Leon MacDonald has signed a two-year deal with the Kintetsu Liners Club in Japan. The 31-year-old said he had signed a deal with Kintetsu and will join the Osaka-based club in…
Harlequins Hero
As Harlequins fly-half, Nick Evans “produced the greatest four minutes of controlled rugby I have been privileged to see against Stade Français” according to Times sports columnist Stuart Barnes. Evans next plays on Sunday…
Rugby’s Return
Rugby Sevens might be only seven years off when it comes to the Olympics, thanks to an effort to reinstate the sport spearheaded by the Oceania National Olympic Committee. During a recent committee meeting…
Memorial at Shore’s Edge
Missing Warriors rugby league player Sonny Fai, 20, is remembered with wreaths and garlands at a memorial on Te Henga, Bethells Beach, in Auckland, a poignant image included in a Los Angeles Times photo…
Australasian Citizenship
Wellington-born David Kirk, former All Black captain and chief executive of Fairfax, is now an Australian citizen. Kirk, skipper of the World Cup winners in the inaugural 1987 tournament, confirmed he would always…
AB Supporters Take Heed
New Zealander and London-based publisher Martin Moodie was “probably one of only 500 in the 26,000 strong crowd” at Limerick’s Thomond Park when the All Blacks played Munster, “ and was honoured to be…
Te Rauparaha’s War Cry
The all-Maori team first performed a haka against Surrey in Richmond in 1888 where they, according to theIllustrated London News, “cavorted about in ostrich-feather capes and tassell’d caps in a device of novelty and…
Looking Back to Black
Former All Black hooker Anton Oliver, 33, is now studying at Oxford University for an MSc in Biodiversity, Conservation and Management, but he’ll play “one more decent game” against Cambridge in the Nomura Varsity…
Rugby’s Poster Boy
All Black fly-half Dan Carter, who recently made number 11 on American network E! Entertainment channel’s list of the 25 Sexiest Men of the World, this week also featured in CNN’s Talk Asia series….
Winning Ways
Former All Black captain Sean Fitzpatrick has been asked to take part in a one-on-one mentoring initiative with a group of young Scotland players. Fitzpatrick will be linked with Ross Ford, the present Scotland…
Wazza’s Gallic Reinvention
Toulouse No 9, Byron Kelleher says that moving to France was the best thing he ever did and though he misses the All Blacks, he has opened another chapter in his life. After 10…
Top Honours in Toulouse
Dunedin-born Byron Kelleher, 31, former All Black and now scrum-half for French team Toulouse, has been voted the Top 14’s player of the season, succeeding Stade Francais’ Argentinean Juan Martin Hernandez. Kelleher scored three…
Emotional Win
The All Blacks have retained the Tri-Nations title for the fourth successive year, beating the Wallabies 28-24 in Brisbane. Sustained by the brilliance of captain Richie McCaw and also Rodney So’oialo, the All Blacks…
Ambition at the Stoop
North Shore-raised former All-Black Nick Evans, 27, now fly-half for English side the Harlequins, could be the player the team needs to help them clinch a top four spot in the Guinness Premiership. So…
